Preparation

Cook bacon in heavy large pot over medium heat until crisp. Using slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels to drain. Add leeks to same pot. Cover and cook until leeks are very tender, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes. Add clam juice, potatoes, 1/2 cup water, thyme, and saffron. Bring to boil; reduce heat to medium and cover. Simmer until potatoes are just tender, stirring occasionally, about 7 minutes. Stir in cream and reserved bacon. Season chowder to taste with salt and pepper.

Sprinkle cod with salt and pepper; place atop chowder. Cover and cook until cod is opaque in center, about 10 minutes.

Using slotted spoon, transfer 1 cod fillet to each of 6 bowls. Ladle chowder over fish and serve.

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Reviews

Loved this recipe and will make again and again. I used a bunch of other vegetables, including zucchini and mushrooms. I sauteed them first before proceeding with the rest of the recipe. I used veggie broth instead of the clam broth. I did not use the potatoes because I did not have any in the house.

Although I altered this recipe a bit (dried thyme, half & half...) it turned out amazing! The cod and saffron compliment each other well. I believe this is a forgiving cod chowder that is sure to please!

I made a "kosher style" version of this recipe, meaning I substituted turkey bacon for pork bacon and fish stock for clam juice. It was DELICIOUS. Turkey bacon doesn't crisp up as well as regular bacon, so I recommend cutting it into smaller pieces in order to avoid a "leathery" texture. I used multi-colored fingerlings and substituted 1/4 cup of dry white wine for 1/4 cup of the water, as recommended by prior reviewers. An easy and delicious recipe.

We loved this recipe--As always slightly amended, with use of whole pint of heavy cream, and 1/2 tsp Cajun hot spice mix I had made and left in the thyme jar which was a great mistake--it blended in. I cut the potatoes thinner and used smaller pieces of cod, shortening cooking time for these, cod was cooked just right.

Wow, we loved this rustic chowder. I used my frozen shrimp broth made from shrimp shells instead of clam juice. Instead of whipping cream I had on hand fat-free sour cream and 1% milk and that worked very well, plus it lighted the recipe. Then I had sliced mushrooms I needed to use so I added them also. The saffron with the shrimp base made this very special. And VERY easy.

Although this is a chowder it really
does have the consistency more of a
broth. The flavor is delicious. I
need to pay more attention to the
cooking time for the cod as it was a
bit overcooked. I used small yellow
yukon potatoes instead of fingerling
potatoes. I'll have to try
substituting water with white wine
next time. ***
3 1/2 stars ! ***

We spied an incredibly
thick filet of cod and
purchased it, not sure
what to do. This recipe
sure changed that! We
crisped the bacon really
well and used an
excellent quality ocean
clam juice. We also
doubled the thyme and
saffron threads. Multi-
coloured fingerling
potatoes cut into big
chunks, with the skin on,
really made this
fabulous. The colour is
beautiful and the taste of
this chowder is out of
this world. Be careful not
to overcook the cod. It
continues cooking in the
hot soup once you get it
to the table.

Great recipe. Not every dish has to be spicey. The French know this. Many of their dishes have a subtle flavor, not overpowering with hot spices. Try this one. Wine makes a good substitute for all or part of the liquid. If you do like spice, add it, but leave out the saffron. Saffron is meant for a hint of flavor, not to be an overpowering spice.

I made this recipe pretty much as is, and it was delicious. I did follow the suggestion of several others and used wine in place of water, however I did add some water, too. I used applewood smoked bacon, thick-sliced, and the flavors were subtle, yet complex and satisfying! Highly recommended for a winter evening.

This soup is very good. The flavor is very delicate, and is best when not overly hot. I used the golden Dutch potatoes which turned out fine. After all the fish was gone, there was still more potatoes and leeks in the pot, so I added some chicken stock and pureed it to make a bowl of potato and leek soup for the next day's lunch.

I had bought the fresh cod on the way home from work and then selected this recipe from Epicurious. Even with the substitutions I had to make -- no potatoes on hand, but did have a can of whole small white potatoes, no leeks but had an onion, no clam juice but did have fish bouillon -- the dish still came out very tasty and got a thumbs up from my husband and my teenaged son. Adding the wine was an excellent suggestion, and the heavy cream and saffron made the dish so tasty. A good quick choice for a chilly evening.

As other cooks have said, this recipe is delicious & very easy.
Thank you to "A Cook from Basking Ridge, NJ" for suggesting the use of wine rather than water - it made a BIG difference in the depth of flavor!
I'm a low-carb eater, so I substituted diced mushrooms for the potato & was not disappointed. Be sure to use heavy cream however - I tried to cut back on cals & used half & half, which made the chowder thinner than it should have been.
A thicker texture would have made this soup sublime, so I'll be sure to use it next time, as the recipe states.

I thought this was very good and my husband absolutely loved it. However I think it needs a little tweaking. Some celery might help, I felt it needed something with a little crunch. Also I think a splash of white wine might give it more depth.